A bench of justices P Sathasivam and J Chelameswar said Chishti shall deposit his passport at the Indian High Commission in Pakistan and furnish as security Rs five lakh in cash within two weeks before the Supreme Court registry.

The Apex Court will now hear the case on November 20 after his return to India on November 1.

Initially, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Mohan Parasaran had insisted that Chishti's local contacts in India should give a surety on his behalf to secure his presence during the appeal proceedings.

However, the bench refrained from imposing any such condition.

The bench further clarified that Chishti's release is subject to the fulfillment of the two conditions imposed upon him.

Chisti, who has been awarded life term in 20-year-old murder case, is currently out on bail but has been asked to confine himself to Ajmer only.

Celebrating his win, Chisti said, “I am very happy with the major relief given by the land’s biggest court.”

RELEASE INDIANS

The virologist further appealed the Pakistan government to release Indian prisoners lodged in Pakistan jails in a bid to build better relations with India.

BAIL TO CHISTI

Earlier on May 4, the Supreme Court had agreed to hear Chishti's plea to visit his country and had sought Centre's response to it. Chishti had been granted bail by the SC on April 9. Held guilty in a 20-year-old murder case, he had been serving life term in a Rajasthan's Ajmer jail.

The Apex Court had granted bail to the Pakistani virologist on humanitarian grounds, considering his old age and the fact that he has been in India since 1992 after a murder case was lodged against him when he came to visit Ajmer to see his ailing mother.

MURDER CHARGES AGAINST CHISTI

Chishti had come to see his mother in 1992 when he got embroiled in a brawl, and, in the ensuing melee, one of his neighbours was shot dead while his nephew got injured.

Born in Ajmer to a prosperous family of caretakers of the Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti shrine, Chishti was studying in Pakistan at the time of partition in 1947 and chose to stay there.